Chapter 8: Seeing Stars

“I’m not hungry, thank you,” Chang Sheng said, stepping out of the room. Before understanding this woman’s intentions, he couldn’t bring himself to eat anything she prepared.

“If you don’t want to eat, don’t. The hungry one will feel it,” Ye Xin Ran replied, not bothering to persuade him.

Chang Ping, however, eagerly followed his older brother, whispering, “Brother, Auntie’s noodles are delicious, and there’s even meat!”

Back in the room, Chang Sheng, with a maturity beyond his years, looked at Chang Ping and asked sternly, “Weren’t you supposed to be looking after our little brother? How did he end up in someone else’s room?”

“He said he likes Auntie. I tried to stop him, but he wouldn’t listen. He’s been so happy following her!”

Seeing that Chang Sheng didn’t respond further, Chang Ping asked again, “Brother, are you really not going to eat the noodles?”

Touching his flat stomach, Chang Sheng replied, “I’m not eating.”

“But they’re so good! Even better than the ones the small kitchen used to make.”

Chang Ping tried again to persuade him but, seeing his brother was already making his bed, quietly murmured in disappointment, “Fine, I’ll go get the medicine for Chang An.”

With that, he went to the kitchen and returned with a bowl of herbal medicine.

Chang Ping was always the one to brew Chang An’s medicine. The little boy wasn’t afraid of the bitterness at all. He gulped it down in one go, even licking the bowl clean.

“Doesn’t it taste bitter?” Ye Xin Ran asked, surprised.

In her era, parents often had to out with their children to get them to take medicine. A child who obediently drank their medicine, especially traditional herbal remedies, was rare.

“It’s super bitter,” Chang An admitted, pulling out a piece of candy to lick. “But eating the candy Auntie gave me makes it less bitter. Second Uncle spent a lot of money on the medicine, so I can’t waste a drop.”

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That night, Chang Ping slept soundly for the first time in ages. However, Chang Sheng, preoccupied with his thoughts, only managed to doze off briefly at dawn.

In the other room, after Chang An had fallen asleep, Ye Xin Ran immediately entered her spatial lab.

She had been pressed for time earlier and was eager to examine everything thoroughly.

The experimental building remained the same as before. The stairways leading to the third and first floors were still shrouded in thick fog, making them inaccessible.

However, the second floor was different.

The machines that had been running during the day had stopped at some point, leaving only the computer screens with data logs still glowing.

Ye Xin Ran quickly typed the names of two medications, “Xue Yan Cream” and “Hu Xin Ning,” into the system. Relevant data immediately appeared on the screen.

According to the computer, a large batch of sealed medications was stored in the lab. If she could find “Ro Suo seeds” and “ice spirit flowers”, these two medicines could be reproduced.

In this relatively undeveloped era, did this mean she had a chance to restart the production of these medicines?

With renewed confidence, Ye Xin Ran inspected the sealed medications. Afterward, she returned to her room, planning to brainstorm ways to earn money while the night was still young. However, as soon as her head hit the pillow, she fell asleep.

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The next morning, as the village’s first rooster crowed, Chang Sheng was already awake.

Chang Ping groggily opened his eyes and asked, “Brother, why are you up so early?”

“Mm. You sleep a little longer,” Chang Sheng replied, dressing quickly and heading outside.

He couldn’t rest easy knowing Chang An was staying in Ye Xin Ran’s room. He needed to check on him.

As he stepped outside, thick smoke billowing from the kitchen caught his attention. Alarmed, he ran toward it.

Near the kitchen, he saw Ye Xin Ran frantically fanning the fire pit with a broken straw fan. The fire inside refused to catch, while thick smoke continued to pour out, making her cough uncontrollably.

“What are you doing?” Chang Sheng asked.

Ye Xin Ran was startled by the sudden voice. When she turned and saw it was Chang Sheng, she immediately let out a sigh of relief.

“Oh, it’s you. Why are you up so early?”

Chang Sheng froze for a moment as he looked at her face.

In addition to the old scar and the smudges of soot from the stove, there was a fresh bruise under her left eye.

The bruise… looked oddly familiar.

Clearing his throat awkwardly, Chang Sheng said, “Sorry, I forgot to warn you yesterday, Chang An isn’t the most well-behaved sleeper.”

Hearing this, Ye Xin Ran let out a cold snort on the surface, but inside, she was screaming in frustration: “Not well-behaved? That kid was a complete menace!”

Last night, she had been sleeping soundly when she felt something heavy suddenly press down on her feet.

Opening her eyes, she discovered Chang An sprawled awkwardly across the bottom of the bed.

At first, she didn’t realize how bad it was. Exhausted, she simply scooped the boy up and placed him back on the pillow.

But before she could fall asleep again, Chang An’s head, as solid as a rock, slammed directly into her eye with a loud thud.

Her vision exploded into a galaxy of stars.

Tears welled up immediately from the sheer pain.

It took her a long time to recover, and by the time she wanted to confront the little rascal, she found him sleeping peacefully, smacking his lips in a dream as though nothing had happened.

Her anger evaporated entirely.

“This kid looks so soft and gentle. How is his skull this hard?!”

She finally understood Chang Ping’s hesitation and subtle warnings.

Throughout the night, Chang An had been a restless bundle of chaos. Every time she opened her eyes, he had moved to a completely different spot on the bed.

Noticing the complex emotions on Ye Xin Ran’s face, Changsheng awkwardly offered, “I’ll apologize on his behalf.”

“Forget it. I won’t argue with a child,” Ye Xin Ran said dismissively.

Just then, Chang Ping woke up. Seeing Ye Xin Ran’s disheveled appearance, he quickly tried to please her. “Auntie, let me start the fire!”

“Alright!” Ye Xin Ran stepped aside, watching as Chang Ping easily lit the fire.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, Chang Sheng muttered, “I’m off to school,” and hurriedly left.

“Does your brother never eat breakfast at home?” Ye Xin Ran asked Chang Ping.

“Mm.” Chang Ping nodded. “Brother says the school provides breakfast, so he doesn’t eat at home. But I’ve seen him sneak a sweet potato sometimes.”

The water in the pot soon came to a boil.

Ye Xin Ran took the leftover dough from yesterday, added a little water to knead it again, and tore it into pieces to cook in the pot.

She had fried some fatty meat earlier, so the soup smelled incredibly fragrant.

Chang Ping swallowed hard.

It was strange, he had eaten until he was full last night, but he felt even hungrier this morning!

As he watched Ye Xin Ran’s efficient movements, a small thought crept into his mind: “It would be nice if Auntie could stay for good.”

Just as he was day dreaming, a voice suddenly called out from the courtyard:

“Chang Ping, why are you up so early making a fire? Didn’t I tell you to wait for me?”